Ministers absent from Tipu celebration in Udupi

Ministers absent from Tipu celebration in Udupi

Mangalore Today News Network

Udupi, Nov 11, 2016: Reports state that Tipu Jayanti celebrations, organised by the Department of Kannada and Culture, was celebrated amid tight police security here on Nov 10, Thursday. Inaugurating the celebrations, Udupi DC T. Venkatesh, said that it was everyone’s responsibility to understand the contribution of great persons. It was essential to ready history to understand any historical person.

The representatives of the Udupi Zilla Muslim Okkoota expressed their dismay at the celebrations here. Of the 12 elected representatives mentioned in the invitation card, 11 of them, including Pramod Madhwaraj, Minister of State for Fisheries, Youth Services and Sports, who is also the district in-charge Minister, were absent.

Hussain Kodibengre, general secretary of the okkoota, said that the entire programme was completed in 20 minutes. It had been organised just for the sake of it.

Though Tipu Sultan wanted to expand his kingdom, he was an efficient administrator. He undertook welfare programmes including construction of tanks. He was a tolerant ruler. He was a patriot who had fought against the British, he said.

Naveen Corea, principal of St. Lawrence Pre-University College, Moodubelle, delivered a lecture on the personality and achievements of Tipu Sultan. He said that Tipu Sultan was a brilliant battle strategist. He constructed a large amount of tanks and was generous in his donations to temples. He had 40 ships and had opened 12 coin minting centres in his kingdom. He also upgraded the military capacity of his forces and gave importance to improving battle technology, he said.

Meenakshi Bannanje, president of the Udupi City Municipal Council (CMC), presided over the function. K.T. Balakrishna, Superintendent of Police; Maheshchandra, tahsildar; and D. Manjunathaiah, CMC commissioner, were present.

Members of the district unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Tipu Jayanti Acharane Virodhi Samiti showed black flags and staged a protest at the Clock Tower here. Mattar Ratnakar Hegde, Baikady Suprasad Shetty, and other BJP and Samiti leaders were taken into preventive custody by the police.